Exposure to polluted air significantly increases the risk of stroke, heart and lung disease, cancer and other diseases, according to a report from the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP).
Air pollutants pose the greatest direct threat to environmental health, with 99 percent of the world’s population breathing unsafe air.
This exposure can have health effects, reduce quality of life and impose costs on individuals, society and the economy.
While this problem can have natural causes such as volcanic eruptions and dust storms, man-made air pollution affects most of the world’s population.
Major human sources include energy production, transportation, industry, residential heating and cooking, agriculture, and waste incineration, which also produce greenhouse gas emissions.
Fine PM2.5 particles – invisible to the human eye and 40 times smaller than the width of a hair – can penetrate the lungs, where they cause inflammation, but can also enter the bloodstream and damage the heart and brain.
Air pollution has long-term effects (such as heart disease, cancer and stroke) and short-term effects such as eye, nose and throat irritation, difficulty breathing, coughing and asthma attacks. This type of pollution affects all age groups, but those most at risk are those who suffer the most and can even affect fetal development.
Under the motto “Together for Clean Air”, the International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies aims to strengthen alliances and share everyone’s responsibility to overcome air pollution.
With the establishment of the International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies, the United Nations aims to raise awareness among governments, international organizations and the population on a global scale to eliminate the multiple problems caused by the lack of clean air and severe Cause damage to people and the environment.
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